WHILE the country has been understandably distracted by news of the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic, there has been a worrisome increase in high-profile murders of public officials, all carried out in especially brazen fashion. This is quite obviously a completely unacceptable state of affairs under any circumstances and is particularly alarming now, as it suggests violent criminals may be taking advantage of the Covid-19 crisis.
On July 7, Jovencio Senados, the inquest division chief of the Manila City Prosecutor’s Office, was shot in a fast, well-coordinated attack along Quirino Avenue in Manila at about 11 a.m. Closed-circuit video footage of the attack showed that Senados’ vehicle was momentarily blocked by another car, allowing a sport utility vehicle carrying the gunman to pull alongside and deliver a rapid volley of shots. Senados was killed on the spot; his nephew, who was driving the senior prosecutor to his office, was unharmed but badly shaken by the attack.
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